Hello,
My wife and I recently purchased an 89 RS automatic that hadn't run in five years. We've got it up and running great but since the first test drive I've noticed some transmission oddities. If you give it just a little gas and drive granny style the tranny seems to shift normally. If you hit it a little harder the RPMs spike up to the 4-5k range (without significant acceleration) and it doesn't seem to want to shift unless you let off the gas. I don't know anything about auto trans but that sounded like slippage to me. What's strange is that it seems to be happening less as we've driven the car around a little more. Last night on a drive around the block I hit it semi-hard and I got good grab and acceleration. Is it possible that the clutch was just gunked up and is now grabbing a little better?

I've also read that the TV or throttle cable could be out of adjustment. The adjustment procedure seems pretty straight forward so maybe I'll try that as well. Opinions?

 

You can try adjusting the TV cable, but it sounds like your trans is on its way out. It is possible that the clutches and passages in the trans were gummed up, but not likely with the symptoms you are describing. How does the fluid look? Does it smell burned?

 

The fluid looked OK when I checked it a few weeks back before we got the motor running. I'll give it a good check again today since it's been driven often now. I think we're going to bring it to a tranny shop for a good flush. I'm thinking that combined with the adjustment should pretty much let us know where we stand.

 

Also FYI, I think the TCC connector under the dash is unplugged. I found a two prong hanging wire many weeks ago and a few people suspected that's what it is. Could that cause any of these symptoms?

 

The TCC Connector runs directly from the transmission towards the front of the car by the firewall. There is no connector under the dash for the tcc

 

So I am having the same issue with my 86 z28. I got it running after it sat for 15 years untouched. Performance Prep/Dr. Injector Mechanics are telling me there is nothing serious wrong with my tranny... they believe its a spring that is getting jammed and then releasing.